Regret me not

I've been thinking a lot about regret lately. We all have moments in our lives we regret, but we find a way to deal with that regret and move forward. We learn from regret and attempt to not make the same mistakes again. There are no guarantees however.

The other part of regret is forgiveness. We seek the forgiveness of those we have hurt, but we also need to forgive ourselves for the mistakes we have made. I think I'm pretty good at admitting when I'm wrong and apologizing to those I've hurt. But I'm not good at all at forgiving myself. I put way too much pressure on myself to be perfect.

But the truth is I'm not perfect. I am here partly because of the regrets of my past. I regret not spending more time in Germany growing up and truly learning the language. I regret not studying abroad. These two things are huge influences into why I'm currently living in Prague. I'm grateful I'm here now and having this experience.

Some people have told me that I'm inspiring for going out and doing this. For selling most everything I own and starting a totally new chapter in my life. To those people, I do say thank you. But I also say - what's stopping you from doing the same? Ok, so maybe living overseas isn't your dream - but what is your dream? What's stopping you from living it?

I am not perfect. And this experience is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. There have been severe ups and downs. I have moments where I just want to go home and be around my friends and family and things that are familiar. But as much as I want that - I want to be here just a little bit more. So here I stay. And for who knows how long. It's not an easy thing - but it's a choice I make each day. Otherwise, it truly would not be worth being here. Life is too short to not be doing what you really want to be doing.